Cleaning

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The festive season is just around the corner, and your social calendar is probably starting to look busier than usual. It is time to make sure you and your home are looking their best!

Let’s be honest – going to the gym on a cold winter’s night isn’t easy. And, it takes away valuable time from household chores. So, why not do both, and swap the treadmill for some good old-fashioned housework? The weekly chores can burn hundreds of calories, and make the house look great too. You can even have a little fun if you play some of your favourite upbeat tunes.

Read on for our cleaning-inspired, getting fit tips and tricks.

How many calories can you burn doing the housework?

‘Tis the season of goodwill…and unexpected guests. At this time of year, someone always seems to be popping by with festive cheer, which prompts us to keep our homes looking spotless.It all starts with the furniture move, so your tree can be admired from anywhere in the room. Then, the upkeep follows; vacuuming the dropped needles under the tree, dusting around the carefully positioned ornaments, and making sure you always have a clean glass to raise a toast with a distant relative.

So, how many calories does all of this burn? We have looked at a recent study, based on doing each household chore for one hour. You will probably be surprised at the figures.

This is great, because these chores don’t necessarily feel strenuous, and in turn, don’t really feel like exercise. So, you should feel even more motivated! And, all of these activities target different areas of the body.

Take a closer look below:

Vacuuming – 178 calories – The push and pull motion will work out your chest, back and arms. Try the Bosch Athlet cordless vacuum, a lightweight model that makes vacuuming quick, easy and hassle free.

Moving furniture – 409 calories (!) – The biggest calorie burner of them all. Make your home perfect for guests and give yourself an all-round workout at the same time.

Top cleaning tracks

Cleaning is a hundred times more enjoyable if you have your favourite tunes to keep you company. Plus, if your playlist has a few upbeat songs, it will encourage you to go that little bit faster – and burn even more calories.

Every little helps

Still in need of a little motivation? Tracking your exercise can be great for spurring you on. Using a device like the TomTom Spark Music – GPS Fitness Watch with Music Storage is a handy way of keeping track of your steps, and pushes you to go that little bit further.

Now, you should have enough information to start planning your weight loss journey. Start now so that you can look sensational for the up and coming festive season.

A recent report found that only 41.9% of UK households have a dishwasher in their home – compared to 69% and 63% in Germany and France. What do our friends on the Continent know that we don’t? Well, perhaps it’s that you can use a dishwasher for more than just washing dishes.

Find out what else you can clean – and cook – in a dishwasher below.

Cleaning

We all know that dishwashers are great at cleaning dishes – the clue is in the name – but they can also be used to clean some more unusual items.

Computer Keyboards

What if I told you research found that computer keyboards are home to more germs and bacteria than a toilet seat? What if I then told you that you can clean your keyboard in the dishwasher? Would you do it?

Putting your keyboard in the dishwasher and running a rinse only cycle will leave it as clean as when you first got it out of the box. However, there’s a lot of debate online about the risks and rewards of this method. Some say it works a treat; others say it can damage the circuitry.

If you decide to take the plunge, make sure you leave the keyboard to dry completely before plugging it back in. This could take a few days.

Nail Clippers, Tweezers & More

If there are a lot of bacteria on a keyboard we don’t even want to imagine what can be found on nail clippers, especially the fold out part that’s used to get under your nails. These, as well as tweezers, non-electrical razors, plastic hairbrushes and combs can all be cleaned and sanitised in the dishwasher.

Wellies, Sandals and Flip Flops

Rather than having them banging around inside your washing machine, pop your rubber or plastic footwear in the dishwasher to give it a good clean.

Children’s Toys

Children take their toys with them everywhere and they quickly become very grubby. Youngsters also love to put toys in their mouths, so it makes sense to keep these items as clean as possible.

Some plastic toys can be cleaned and sanitised in the dishwasher, but be sure they can take the high temperatures. Toys with removable parts should be placed in a mesh bag to stop any parts going missing.

Vegetables

Having a big family get-together? Or perhaps you’ve just got back from the farmers market with a lot of fruit and veg? Save yourself some time and use less water by popping your produce in the dishwasher and running a rinse cycle to remove any dirt. This is great for root vegetables like potatoes, carrots and parsnips, celery, and some firm fruits with a thick skin, like apples.

Other items that can be cleaned in a dishwasher include sports clothes, pet toys and bowls, fridge and freezer shelves and cleaning cloths, sponges and dusters.

Cooking

Reaching temperatures of around 75°C means your dishwasher isn’t just for washing things – you can cook too. The high temperature allows you to slow cook or steam your food, and if you have a vacuum pack machine, you can treat yourself to a bit of sous-vide cooking. You can even cook a meal at the same time as cleaning your dirty dishes, so this is a really environmentally friendly method too.

Soft-boiled eggs

One of the easiest things to cook in the dishwasher are eggs. Simply pop your eggs into an air-tight jar with some water, put the lid on tightly, and place in the dishwasher.

You can then fill your dishwasher with dirty dishes as usual, put in the dishwasher tablet and select the intensive cycle. Once the cycle is complete, take out the jars and you have perfectly boiled eggs.

Lasagne

Cooking a lasagne in the dishwasher isn’t that practical, but it’s worth it just to prove it’s possible. Imagine the conversation when you serve this as your dinner party centrepiece. It requires a bit more effort than just putting food in jars though, and you also need some aluminium tape.

Bagels

This isn’t quite cooking, but it’s is a lot more practical than cooking a lasagne. You can prove bagel dough in a dishwasher by leaving it in there for 10-15 minutes after a high temperature cycle – the warmth and humidity speeds up the process. Just make sure the cycle has finished before you put the dough in, else you’ll end up with soggy bagels.

OK, so maybe being able to cook a lasagne isn’t the only reason dishwashers are so popular in Germany and France. It’s probably because more people in Europe know that the latest models are incredibly energy efficient and don’t have to take up much space.

*Euronics accepts no responsibility for items damaged or discoloured through dishwasher cleaning, or damage done to the dishwasher itself. Please ensure that items are dishwasher safe before washing them.

Euronics stores are all Independent Electrical Retailers, who as members of Euronics, the Largest Electrical Buying Group in Europe, join forces to create heavyweight buying power. With 30 Member countries across Europe and 11,000 specialist stores and branches, reaching 600 million consumers, every agent in each country is a specialist in the field of Electrical goods.